Welcome to the first part of the Windows App Studio Tutorial. In this article we will be looking at what the online tool of Windows Phone App Studio provides us. We will also see how anyone can get started (and I mean anyone, more on this later) to create a Windows Phone app in a few simple steps. Read more “Windows Phone App Studio – Part 1 – Getting Started”

Learn to make amazing Windows Phone apps at Nokia DVLUP Day in New York City on Saturday March 22, 2014 and win big prizes just for participating. Join Nokia Developer Ambassadors Nick Landry & Lance McCarthy, as well as several Microsoft Technical Evangelists, as they provide hands-on Windows Phone development training in a dynamic and fun event. Whether you’re a seasoned developer or barely know how to code, you will walk away with the ability to write a mobile app.

With full sample source code and step-by-step instructions, you will learn how to make an app or game from scratch, or learn new techniques to enhance your current apps & games. No matter what you want to build – an app or a game – or what your programming skill level is, four individual tracks to choose from means there is something for everyone.

DVLUP Day is a unique community event that combines presentations by Windows Phone experts along with a hands-on workshop to help attendees get started on their apps. BRING YOUR LAPTOP! Work with our experts, get started on your app or game, publish it within 3 weeks after the event and get a free Windows Phone 8 device!

Welcome to WPdev Saturday!

Please join Nick Landry and other Windows Phone community experts for WPdev Saturday on February 22, 2014 in New Jersey for a fun day of mobile app building. WPdev Saturday is an event brought to you by Nokia DVLUP and sponsored by Microsoft.

Why?

The goal is to help you overcome any obstacles that might be preventing you from publishing an app. Whether you’re working on your first app or putting the polish on your 20th, all are welcome. If you do not have any apps in the works, then come and build a Microsoft App Studio app with our help.

This years Super Bowl (or should I call it the “Big Game”) has a few interesting plot lines. Will Peyton Manning quiet the critics by winning the game with the most explosive offense we have seen since the Brady Bunch back in the 2007 season?

Will Richard Sherman live up to the “best cornerback in the game” quotes (or you should I say rant)?

Will New York and New Jersey be able to host a cold weather game?

Will there be any commercials worth talking about on Monday?

Once we get past the plot lines we can focus on the real things that matter…the food and beer at the party.

While you bring chips, wings, ribs, beer, drinks, I will be bringing the apps to my Super Bowl party. Not apps as in appetizers but apps in Windows apps for tablets and phones.

Here is my list.

Windows Phone Apps that are Super Bowl worthy.

Nokia Camera – You need to have the Lumia Amber update but is a great app to maximize your devices hardware. Great for the pre-game pics as well as some embarassing moments.

6tag – After I take those pics I can use 6tag to show them off on my Instagram feed. #Hashtag away!

Untappd – While you are sitting there and drinking some craft brew, “check-in” and follow your brewery with this great app.

Touchdown Run – During the halftime special or some local commercials, check out this game. Simple yet addicting.

Waterville Resort – Since my beloved Patriots are not in this years game and I dont have a team to root for I will be investigating some great ski resorts to spend my Sundays at.

Windows 8 Apps that will get everyone talking.

Sports Memory Match – This is a fun game to keep the excitement going of the BIG GAME. Take a break and play this one for a bit.

WTD in Seattle – If all this Richard Sherman talk got you motivated to take a trip to the left coast and check out Seattle, what better app to download and see whats happening out there.

Are We There Yet – Since this will be the last weekend most of us will be glued to a TV set watching Football, our family gets us back. What a perfect time to start thinking about trips and travel.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame – And speaking of travel and no more Football, we can start looking towards Baseball. This app helps you get there with ease.

Cholesterol! How Much – Since we just chowed down a ton of food and beer for the past Football season, we can now start getting back in shape. First lets see how healthy we are with this app.

What will you need to bring?

If you need help on an existing app, bring your laptop dev environment with your app on it.

If you want to build an app without any code, bring a laptop that has a modern browser (IE10-11, Chrome). You’ll only need your browser to build and submit the app to the store. If you do not have a Windows Phone, the experts will be able to help you test the app on their phone

Giveaways

Everyone who attends and publishes their app will be entered to win a “hero” Nokia Lumia (1020, 928, 925, 920, etc) of their choice. I’ll be saving some swag/prize surprises for the day of the event. Also, Microsoft will be bringing some prizes of their own! I will update this post with more details as we get closer to Feb 1st.

Cambridge Center is accessible via the MBTA Red Line at the Kendall Square/MIT stop (between the Charles Street and Central Square stops). The Red Line links up with other lines providing access to virtually the entire Greater Boston region, including Logan Airport. Please follow the Microsoft signs to our main entrance in the front of our building.

There is a lot of momentum with Windows 8 right now. From the launch of the Nokia 2520 to all of the Windows Phones and other tablets, it is a great time to be part of the Windows ecosystem.

With that said, it is a great time for Students and Developers to start building apps and games for the Windows Platform. Listed below are a few promotions going on.

App Builder Rewards: Double Points December

Publish an app in December • Complete the quest • Earn 10,000 points

It’s Double Points December! Publish your app in the Windows Store and complete the “Apps Quest” between December 1st and 31st 2013, and you’ll get double points for up to 8 apps. The more apps you submit, the more you earn. Join App Builder Rewards today! https://build.windowsstore.com/rewards

Build an app this holiday season and ring in the new year with some cash in your pocket

We are excited to announce the Windows 8 Holiday App Challenge. Spend your winter break coding an awesome new app to be eligible to win up to $150. Full contest details can be found at http://windows8challenge.com.

The Modev Windows $10k App Contest

We’re looking for those game changers, industry disruptors—denizens of creative awesome from across the developer community. We’ll award prizes two ways:

An impartial panel of judges will pick the top three apps from among the entries and award prizes

We’ll put the pool of entries up for a public vote, and encourage some healthy competition between entrants to promote your app and get the public to vote for you

To qualify, entrants need to submit new Windows 8 or Windows Phone apps to the Windows Store or Windows Phone Store between October 1 and December 31, 2013, and fill out the Contest Entry form. Judging and public voting will begin in January 2014, with winners announced by January 31st.

I have been an iPhone user for some time now. I had a 3GS and a 4S. I liked both of the phones. Good quality. Great app selection. Ease of use. Albiet some quirks but overall a great phone. However, when I start my new job in a few days it makes more sense that I have a Windows Phone. So I did a bit of research on what Windows Phone to get and the answer just kept coming back to the Nokia 1020. Recently launched. Great camera. Windows Phone 8. Why not? So I took the plunge.

My purchase journey is like the “normal” purchase path.

Problem recognition – “I need to get a Windows Phone”

Search – “The Verge, forums, Nokia website etc. all provided me info”

Evaluation – “Do I want to save money and get last years phone or take the plunge and get the latest and greatest”

Purchase decision – “Walk in the store. ATT.com or Microsoft Store online and get a free case”

Post-Purchase – “Sweet! I got the phone…uh..did I make the right call?”

My Post-Purchase impressions where “wow, this is big”. I am coming from an iPhone 4S which is a great size. Fits in your hand, feels sturdy. This Nokia 1020 is much bigger. The weight of it is a little more but not too bad to notice. My second impression was the back of the phone. Being touted as teh next best camera since cameras were invented, you can tell right away that the camera is the focus of this phone. It protrudes from the back and will not allow the phone to lay flat.

Now, what runs through my mind is this is a major change or maybe buyers remorse. Not only from an operating system but from a physical and emotional stand point. My New England Patriots case won’t fit. My car charger. How will this hook up to my home stereo to play music? Will it fit in my pocket? My wife will kill me when she gets the credit card bill. Then my mind quickly goes to the features of the phone. What about my apps? How can I get the same ones on Windows Phone? My pictures? My contacts?

Well, that went away after about 3 minutes of using the Nokia 1020. The Windows Phone operating system is slick. Great transitions. Home screen that makes sense. Organize app icons super easy. So far so good.

My big question now is my contacts. Ugh. How will they come over. Well, I found this app called “Transfer My Data” (could not have a better name) and it just did that. Transfered my data. Wow. I had more issues transfering contacts from my iPhone 3GS to my iPhone 4S and that was using the same operating system!

My photos I just backed up so that was not a big deal, however there is an app that will send those over as well.

Now, apps. I read the internet and see “Windows Phone does not have any apps, that’s why no one uses it”. I was skeptical at first but I can honestly say you cannot believe everything you read on the internet.

Facebook, Foursquare, FoodSpotting, ESPN, Twitter, Spotify, Pandora, Untappd, Zite, Weather Channel, Netflix and Kindle. Check! They are all there. The one I am missing is Instagram but sounds like it is on its way. The biggest pain in installing these apps is remembering your usernames and passwords, but after that hurdle the fun began. Setting up the home screen icons!

I can honestly say after a day of using this phone I’m sold. This phone does not only have a great camera (which I never even talked about yet) but the Windows Phone operating system works well. App selection is not bad. I would even say pretty close to the AppStore. (How many tip calculators do you really need anyway?)

I have not used the camera enough to really comment on it, but the little I did use, it is awesome.

Overall the phone is great and if anyone is thinking of taking the plunge and switch from an iPhone or Android to Windows Phone, it is easier than you think.